Item 8 of the Code of Conduct for Councillors provides that each councillor must, within 60 days of his or her election (or appointment as a local representative to the district council), declare to the municipal manager, in writing, interests and gifts.
With the advent of the new democratic system in 1978, after 40 years of authoritarian regime, the concern of decision-makers designing local political institutions was to prevent the local arena from becoming a focus of political destabilisation, as it had been in the pre-dictatorship period.
Municipal council meetings are central to local democracy. It is where the municipal executive accounts, municipal policies and by-laws are adopted, and essential governance and administrative business is transacted.
The importance of political parties to representative democracy is well documented. In South Africa’s municipal councils, a majority of councillors serve at the behest of their political parties. Councillors, especially those who serve in the municipal executive, work closely with the municipal manager (MM) who is responsible for ensuring an effective, efficient, and accountable administration.
In Electoral Commission of South Africa and Another v Speaker of the uMhlathuze Local Council and Others, the Electoral Court had to deal with what happens when a contingent of councillors refuses to participate in the election of district representatives. The two major questions underlying this judgment are: (1) Must the composition of a local municipality’s delegation to the district reflect the size of the local municipality? Or must it reflect the diversity of parties that voted for the delegation? Or must it reflect both? (2) What are the consequences for the election of district representatives, when a party walks out, and refuses to participate in the election?
Mining in South Africa often takes place in rural areas, where the main source of the livelihood and subsistence of rural residents is derived from their land and livestock. Mining activities often force people to leave the land they use for subsistence farming and grazing. It results in communities no longer having enough land for farming, therefore severely compromising their ability to make a living.
This article is the second in a series of articles that unpack the five major reasons why traditional leaders rejected the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management of 2013 (SPLUMA) in their areas of jurisdiction. The previous article analysed the first reason, namely, the lack of meaningful engagement.
In 2023, the quality of South Africa’s water was put in the spotlight when several cholera outbreaks and deaths were recorded. The outbreaks were initially recorded in Hammanskraal, but later spread across four provinces, including Mpumalanga.
What recourse do citizens have when the State fails to realise the fundamental right of access to housing? Five recent judgments have affirmed the 133 applicants’ right to housing, yet the applicants in the Thubakgale v Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality matter are still without adequate housing. Where and when does the buck stop?
